The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-08-17

dren OF heroes the otner emDlems OF tnelr
fathers bravery, so last night did these hu-
man hyenas plumber the dead from this
terrible accident and take even the shoes
which covered their feet Who these
wretches are is not known. Whether
they were band OF pickpockets
who accompanied the train, or
some irobber gang who were lurking in
the vicinity cannot be said. The horrible
suspicion, however, exists and there are
many who give it credit, thai the accident
was deliberately planned case of train
wrecking; that the bridge was set on fire
by miscreants who hoped to seize the op-
portunIty offered, and the fact that the
bridge was so far consumed at the time
the train came along and the fact that the
train was an hour and half late, are
pointed out as evidence of careful con.
spiracy. 1t seems hardly possible that
man could be so lost to all the ordinary
feelings which animate the Dasest of the
human race, but still men who
will rob dead men; who will
steal from the dying and will
plumber the wounded, held dowa
by broken beams of wrecked car, whose
Death by fire seemed imminent, can do
most anything which is base, and that IS
what these fiends in human form did.
They went into the cars when the fire was
burning underneath, aud when the poor
wretches vino were pinned there begged
them for Gods sake to help them out,
stripped them of their watches and jeGelry
and searched their pockets for money.
When the dead bodies were laid out in the
cornfeld these hyenas turned them over
in their search fer valuables, and that the
plundering was done by an organized gang
was proven by the fact that this morning
out in the cornfeld, sixteen purses, all
empty, were found in one heap. 1t was q
chastity plundering, and had the plunderers
been caught this afternoon they would
surely have been lynched.
A HORRIBLE SCENE.
There was one incident Of the accident
which stood out more horrible than all of
was man, his wife and little child. His
name could not be learned, bat il is said
he got on at Peoria. When the accident
occurred the entire family of three was
caught and held down by broken wood
work. Finally when relief came
the man turned to the friend
ly aid and feebly said: "Take out
my wife first, am afraid the child Is dead,
So they carried out the mother, and as a
broken seat was taken off her crushed
breast, the blood which swelled from
her lips told how badly she was hurt.
They carried the child, fair haired, blue
eyed girl of three, and laid her in the corn
field dead, along side her dying mother.
Then they went back for the father, and
brought him out. Both his legs were
broken, but he crawlsd through the
corn to the side of his wife, and feeling
her loved features in the darkness,
pressed some brandy to her lips and asked
her how she felt. A groan was the only
answer, and the next instant she died. The
man felt the forms OF his dead wife and
child, and cried out: my God there is
nothing for me-to live for now" and tax
ing pistol out of his pocket pulled the
trigger. The bullet went surely through
his brain, and the dead bodies of that little
family are now lying side by side in Chats
worth waiting to be Identified.
THEORIES AS TO THE ORIGIN OF THE FIRE.
There have been many guesses as to the
origin of the fire which weakened the
bridge and caused the accident, but so
far they are nothing but guesses. The
most probable one is that spark from the
furnace of the engine of a train which
passed two hours before caused the blaze
The season has been very dry hereabout
for long time, almost no rain has fallen.
and so the wooden work of the bridge was
like finder. A live coal dropped on it
would fire it at once and the resulting &C
cldent soon follow.
Another startling theory is the one OF
train wrecking. This is an awful one to cen
template, but it has its adherents, They
point to the fact that there were lot OF
thieves about. To the additional fact that
they seemed to be members of an organize
ton working together and the diabolical
heartlessness with which they went about
their work, indicated devilishness which
would stop at nothing,
ExCURsIoNIsTs RETURNING.
The Times, Galesburg, ILL.,, special says:
"a number of Galesburg people who
were on the excursion train returned to
night. w. Quicker and wife were in the
rear end of chair car. The shock came
about ten minutes to IL; was reused, u
said Mr.. Quicker, "by the smashing oil
glass and the breaking OF car timbers and
by shrieks of pain and cries for help. Oul
F.! car had been telescoped and was standing
nearly On end, our end being
twenty-five feet IN the air.
broke car window and man
sged to slide down the side
Others of our party did the same. The cal
was a sight; the top parted, the side:
crushed in. At the time of the accident
there were thirty in the car. Six of us goI
out alive. 1t was horrible. There were
hardly any lights to be had. There was nc
water. The cars caught fire. Willow
switches and earth were used to put out
the flames with. Isaw most pathetic sights
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